AUTOMOTIVE
Renault is cutting 15,000 jobs worldwide as part of a €2bn (£1.8bn) cost-cutting plan after seeing sales plunge because of the virus pandemic.
“This plan is essential,” said interim boss Clotilde Delbos, who announced cuts in production to focus on more profitable car models.
Some 4,600 job cuts will be in France, and the firm said on Friday that it had begun talks with unions.
On Thursday, Renault’s strategic partner Nissan unveiled huge job cuts.
Renault, 15% owned by the French state, said six sites are under review.
The company is slashing costs by cutting the number of subcontractors in areas such as engineering, reducing the number of components it uses, freezing expansion plans in Romania and Morocco and shrinking gearbox manufacturing worldwide.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52845849
Iconic UK supercar maker and Formula One team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit demand.
The firm employs around 4,000 people but 1,200 of those are to be made redundant, the vast majority in the UK.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52808927
The new owner of Norton Motorcyles has named its interim chief executive as it looks to steady the ship at the firm after buying it out of administration.
John Russell, a vastly-experienced manufacturing professional, has joined Norton after TVS Motors bought the company for £16m last month.
Russell was previously chief executive of Manganese Bronze, the firm that made London taxis, and managing director of Harley-Davidson in Europe. He was also managing director – commercial at JLR for eight years.
Derby-based Mulholland Automotive is to launch its first model – the Legend 480 – which the company’s owner has dubbed a “pure driver’s car”.
Mulholland Automotive, part of the Mulholland Group of companies, says the V8-powered car will “produce both thrilling performance” and a “tactile class-leading performance.
The firm’s owner, Graham Mulholland says the order book for the Legend 480 are now open.